


Gentleness

by doop_doop



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Backrubs, Getting Together, Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Massage, Pining, both pre and post timeskip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-07
Updated: 2019-09-07
Packaged: 2020-10-11 11:54:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20545745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doop_doop/pseuds/doop_doop
Summary: Three moments in time, before, during and after the war.Or: two times Dedue offers to give Dimitri a backrub, and the one time he doesn't have to.





	Gentleness

Dedue instantly noted Dimitri’s grimace of pain as they sat down for breakfast. “Is something the matter, Your Highness?” he asked, frowning with concern.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Dimitri said. “My neck just aches.”

“Your neck?”

“And upper back, yes. Perhaps I slept on them wrong, or had bad posture. It is no matter.” 

“You were up late in the library last night,” Dedue said, thinking aloud. “Perhaps you spent too long reading at a strange angle…”

“Perhaps,” Dimitri said, working his neck back and forth. “Well, no matter. With any luck it will be gone by the end of the day.”

Dedue kept a close eye on him that day - closer than usual, even - and to his dismay Dimitri’s ache never did go away. He hid it valiantly, but Dedue knew him well enough he could tell instantly when something was out of place; it was clear just from the way Dimitri held himself that he was still suffering.

So, that evening, as they were heading back to their rooms after eating dinner, he broke the silence by asking: “Is there anything I can do to help your back?”

“Ah,” Dimitri said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “You can tell it’s still bothering me, can’t you.”

“Yes, of course.”

“I don’t know that there’s anything to be done,” Dimitri said. “I’ll just be careful to keep better posture in the future. Eventually it will go away, hopefully by the time I wake up tomorrow…”

“I could give you a massage.”

That made Dimitri turn to him, wide-eyed. “Dedue!” he said, and glanced around; but Dedue had made sure they were alone before he’d broached the subject. 

He knew it could be taken strangely, but the few times he could remember getting one himself, he remembered it feeling good - a mixture of pleasure and pain, the gradual lessening of the ache. But it was intimate. If anyone saw, they would certainly look at both of them strangely. 

“I thought perhaps it could help,” Dedue added, wondering if it was a mistake, because Dimitri was still looking at him with the same shocked expression. “But if you would rather not, of course I won’t.”

“I think I would like to give it a try,” Dimitri said. “Let’s go to my room.”

\---

Dimitri sat in front of Dedue. He wore the long-sleeved white shirt of the school uniform, his cape and jacket cast aside. “To be honest, I have never received a massage.” He was facing away, but Dedue could hear the smile in his voice. “I am not entirely sure what to expect!”

“Well,” Dedue said, “I will put my hands on your shoulders, and use my thumbs to ease some of the tension from the muscles in your upper back and neck. If it hurts too much you should let me know, and I will be more gentle. Does that sound alright?”

“Yes,” Dimitri said. “It sounds wonderful.”

Dedue set his hands on Dimitri. His first urge was to linger - to relish the feeling of Dimitri’s body - but he knew he could not. It was still good, just being able to touch Dimitri, but Dedue knew he had to be polite, to know his place. The more he thought about it, the more surprised he was that the prince had said yes to the idea in the first place, and it would not do for Dedue to overstep his bounds.

He heard Dimitri groan almost as soon as he dug his thumbs in. “Is it unpleasant?” Dedue asked, pausing. Dimitri shook his head, so Dedue continued, finding the muscles, the places where he knew Dimitri was sore. 

Dimitri’s voice cut through the silence a few minutes later. “Dedue?”

Dedue stopped. “Yes, your highness?”

“Let me, ah, let me remove my shirt,” Dimitri said. “I think it will be more effective that way.”

“Yes, I think so too.”

They’d seen each other shirtless dozens of times before, of course, but it was something else entirely to be this close, to watch Dimitri unbuttoning his shirt, to watch more and more skin be exposed as his fingers worked their way down, button by button. And then he cast it aside and turned back around, and it hit Dedue that he was being _ invited to touch, _ that he could lay his hands on Dimitri’s bare skin - that Dimitri _ wanted _ it. 

As Dedue began the massage anew, Dimitri bent his neck forward, letting his head hang slack. “This is nice,” he said. “It hurts, but it feels good at the same time. What a strange sensation.” 

“I think a little pain is to be expected,” Dedue said. “At least, I recall it being normal.”

“As I said, I don’t know what to expect. But so far I am enjoying it.”

Dimitri’s skin was turning pink where his thumbs were rubbing, Dedue noticed. He moved up to the tops of Dimitri’s shoulders and back of his neck, and was rewarded with a groan. _ “There,” _Dimitri said, “that’s where it hurts the most…”

Dedue focused his attention on that spot, wishing he could feel what Dimitri felt, to share his pain and know what could make him feel good. He kept his gaze fixed to the back of Dimitri’s head, trying not to look too closely at the still-vivid scars that arced across his back. Dedue did not know if Dimitri was self-conscious of them, and did not want to stare in case he was.

He worked until his thumbs ached, until he felt his hands might go numb. Then, at last, Dimitri pulled away and stretched, putting one hand on the opposite shoulder and rolling it in circles. “I think it worked,” he said. “It’s still a bit sore, but I feel… looser, somehow.” 

“Good,” Dedue said. “I hope the pain is completely gone by the time you wake up tomorrow morning.”

“I do as well,” Dimitri said, pulling his shirt back on. Dedue tried not to stare too hard as he rebuttoned it. When he’d finished, Dimitri shot him a smile. “And if you ever feel sore, do let me know - perhaps I can try my hand at giving _ you _ a massage.”

\---

\---

Dimitri was suffering.

Dedue could see it as plain as day. The others saw the same things he did, but they were all wrong in their interpretations. _ Dimitri is a wild animal - the Boar is showing his true face - _

No. Dimitri was suffering. He had always shown grief differently than others, and now he let it cover him like a cloak; he changed the path of his life for it. 

He stood in the cathedral and stared at the rubble and did not speak. Dedue watched him. 

Dimitri was motionless for a long time, but then he did something familiar - he leaned his head back, rolling it from side to side. Dedue recognized this motion, like an image from a long-forgotten dream. But the longer he watched, the more sure he was that he was right..

It was that years-old recognition that gave Dedue the courage to approach Dimitri. He waited until they were entirely alone in the vast open room, then closed the distance between them. Dedue knew Dimitri heard his footfalls and was choosing to ignore his approach. That was fine; he had expected no different.

“Your Highness,” Dedue said, keeping his distance so as not to make Dimitri feel overcrowded, “may I give you a massage?”

Dimitri spun around, his eye wide, his cape billowing dramatically. _ “What?” _

“You are sore,” Dedue said. “Perhaps it is the weight of that cloak you wear.”

“It isn’t heavy,” Dimitri said. “I hardly notice it.”

“Regardless, you are sore. If you wish, I will massage your shoulders.”

Dimitri stared at him for a long moment. “Trying to make it like old times, Dedue?” he said at last, his expression cold. “Trying to turn back the clock?”

“That was not my intention,” Dedue said. “I merely noticed that you were uncomfortable physically. I thought perhaps I could remedy that.” 

“You were wrong,” Dimitri said, raising his chin. “I am not uncomfortable. Now leave me.”

It was a lie, Dedue knew, but he had been given a direct order. He nodded curtly and backed away, tracing his steps halfway to the other end of the cathedral. Then he turned back to continue watching Dimitri, who was now staring at the pile of rubble again. He was holding very, very still, Dedue noticed, as if he was making a great effort not to give himself away.

\---

\---

“What a long day,” Dimitri said, and Dedue heard the exhaustion in his voice. Even if they’d wanted to hide it, they were far too tired for that, weary down to their bones. But they were not unhappy; the smile he’d seen Dimitri wearing that day was a genuine one, surprised pleasure at the public’s love for him.

“We will rest well tonight,” Dedue said. “No more battles. You can sleep in as late as you please.”

“Yes. I look forward to it,” Dimitri said. “But all that socializing, visiting with people, giving speeches… it wears one down. I’m not sure one night of sleep will be enough to replenish the energy I’ve lost as of late.”

“I imagine. I do not blame you for feeling so.”

“And my neck is stiff and sore... Keeping such straight posture took a toll on me.” Dimitri looked Dedue head-on, a smile playing at the corner of his lips. “But there is something I can think of that might help.”

Dedue felt his heart speed up. He tried not to look too excited, in case he was wrong. “What is that?”

“A massage.” Dimitri smiled more broadly. “Will you join me in my bedroom?”

“Of course,” Dedue said, rising to follow without hesitation. 

\---

It was the same, but it was so different. Dimitri had new scars now, so many scars Dedue knew he might never learn where they all came from. But the largest scars on Dimitri’s back were still the ones he’d received on the day of their meeting. Dedue traced them with a finger, careful to keep his touch gentle. 

“They are still clear?” Dimitri asked. 

“Yes. They will never fade entirely.”

“Good.”

Dedue pulled his hand away, feeling the sting of tears in his eyes. It was strange for him to get so emotional; it must have been the long day getting to him, because everything in him felt raw, upended. “I will begin the massage now,” he said, hoping his voice at least sounded normal. 

Dimitri was tense, but as Dedue’s hands worked the muscles on his shoulders, the stiffness began to ease away. Dimitri relaxed his head, letting it hang down, and Dedue heard his breaths grow longer and deeper. “If I was lying down, I might very well fall asleep,” Dimitri said.

“You should lie down then.” Dedue pulled his hands away, setting them in his lap. “It has been a long day. I do not mean to keep you awake.”

“No,” Dimitri said, and turned, and suddenly they were very close - Dimitri shirtless and warm and relaxed, his face quite near Dedue’s. “Don’t stop.” But he did not turn back around. 

“I cannot give you a back massage while you are facing me.”

“I love you,” Dimitri said.

Dedue knew he had heard correctly, but the words were so out of place he did not understand them. “Excuse me?” he said. “You-”

“I love you.” Dimitri smiled, although the expression seemed nervous. He turned so that his entire body faced Dedue’s, their knees brushing. “I know it would upset you if I were to say I am undeserving of your loyalty, but I truly feel I am. I could ask for nothing better. I feel I am the luckiest man, that you have stayed by my side through everything that has happened.”

Though he was sitting still, Dedue felt as though he could not catch his breath.

“I cannot see any future but one by your side,” Dimitri went on. He reached out and took one of Dedue’s hands, holding it gently in both of his own. “And I do not want any future but that one. I want you to know the extent of my feelings for you - friendship, of course, but love as well.”

Dedue closed his eyes. Opened them again. Dimitri was still there, his cheeks flushed, expression soft and hopeful.

“I hope you already know my future is entwined with yours,” Dedue said. “No matter what, I will never leave your side. Had you - had you chosen a different partner, my role would have been as a vassal and friend. But… I will gladly accept your love, Dimitri. I love you too.”

He had thought of saying this so many times - for years and years, since before the war, even before Garreg Mach - but never thought he actually would. The words were unfamiliar, but they felt good to say, pleasing in their rightness. Dedue wanted to say it again and again. 

“That makes me deeply happy,” Dimitri said, and pulled Dedue forward into a hug. Dedue stroked Dimitri’s back, feeling the warmth of him, the muscles beneath his skin and the slight ridges of the scars he bore. 

“But, I must say, you do look tired,” Dedue said, when they pulled apart. “It has certainly been a long day, and you should get some rest.”

“Even after a love confession, you cannot stop looking out for my comfort?”

“I do not see why that should have anything to do with it,” Dedue said, frowning. “You should sleep. I will be here when you wake, and I will be by your side all day tomorrow, and the next day, and so on. A love confession is no reason not to get adequate rest.”

“I should have expected a response like that from you,” Dimitri said, not meanly, and leaned forward to kiss Dedue’s cheek.

Dedue wanted to be stern, but he could not hide his smile. “Dimitri…”

“It is still a surprise to hear you say my name,” Dimitri said. “But I love it. I hope you never stop.”

“I only dare to do so when we are alone.”

“Of course,” Dimitri said, kissing Dedue’s cheek again, his forehead, his chin. “The world does not need to know. Only you and I - that is enough.”

“I love you,” Dedue said; he felt so mindlessly tired it seemed the only thing he could say, as overwhelmed as he was by emotion. Instead of a response, Dimitri kissed him on the lips. Dedue closed his eyes, but he could feel Dimitri smiling, and he gave Dedue’s hand a squeeze.

_ I love you. I love you. I love you. _

He felt his tears from earlier welling up in his eyes, and when they broke apart Dimitri reached a hand up to wipe them away. “I am happy,” Dedue said, pressing his forehead to Dimitri’s; but the words hardly needed to be spoken. He knew Dimitri could see it on his face, clear as day.

**Author's Note:**

> [come say hi on Twitter!](https://twitter.com/doop_doop2)


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